CNG-run city service buses have continued flouting government order for not increasing the fares on the pretext of CNG price increase as they have already been charging between Tk 2 and Tk 5 more on various routes. Passengers on Sunday complained the CNG-run buses had continued taking increased fares they started charging after the April 25 price increase. The government on Saturday revised upwards the fares for CNG-run auto-rickshaws and taxi cabs, but kept CNG-run buses out of the process because of their higher profitability compared with buses run on diesel. The CNG auto-rickshaw and cab drivers also charged much higher amounts, almost double the earlier fares, said some passengers. Motaleb Miah, who travelled on a CNG-run Madhumati Paribahan bus, said he was disappointed about the increased fares. He said he had to pay Tk 20, up by Tk 4 on the previous fare, for travelling from Gulshan to Motijheel. Dhaka Metropolitan Police joint commissioner M Jasimuddin said the government would file cases against the CNG-run buses which would charge increased fares by flouting official order. The Bangladesh Road Transport Authority on April 17 conducted a mobile court to stop buses from charging increased fares, but nothing significant could be noticed in this direction. A CNG-run auto-rickshaw driver at Tejgaon on Sunday said he was charging higher amount by carrying passengers on contract. He said he would keep doing so until he would get the meter calibrated to match the increased fare. The auto-rickshaw and cab owners suggested adjustment of meters at the earliest. Calibration of meters to match the increased fare will take at least a month, said government officials and transport owners. The Bangladesh Road Transport Authority on Sunday started issuing letters to the meter sellers, asking them to complete the process by May 30, said Humayun Rashid Khalifa, director (engineering) of the road transport agency. The meter sellers are not supposed to take any charge for calibration, but they charged an amount between Tk 500 and Tk 800 for the job in 2007, auto-rickshaw owners complained. Out of about 15 meter sellers, only five to six are now active. Others could not be traced in their addresses, said ATM Nazmul Hasan, general secretary of the Dhaka City CNG Auto-rickshaw Owners' Association. The fare for CNG auto-rickshaw has been increased to Tk 18, from Tk 13.5, for the first two kilometres and Tk 6 for each subsequent kilometre. The minimum fare has been set at Tk 18, in place of Tk 15. The fare rate for yellow air-conditioned cab has been set at Tk 40, up from Tk 20, for the first two kilometres and Tk 10, from Tk 8, for each subsequent kilometre. For non-air-conditioned cab, the rate for the first two kilometres is Tk 30, instead of Tk 15, and then Tk 8, from Tk 6, for each kilometre. The minimum fare will be equivalent to the charge set for the first two kilometres for both air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned cabs. There are 13,000 CNG-auto-rickshaws in the capital city and 5,000 more will soon be hitting the road, said BRTA officials. They said there were 11,000 registered taxicabs.